The Royal College of GPs has offered an olive branch to David Cameron in their
bitter battle over health reforms, just weeks after condemning them as
“damaging, unnecessary and expensive”.

The College, which has previously criticised the Bill in a series of public letters and interviews, has now appealed for compromise over the proposed changes.

Despite urging politicians to “do what they can to withdraw” the Bill, the College’s chair Dr Clare Gerada has written to Mr Cameron personally to seek an “acceptable way forward”.

Emphasising their “common ground”, she said it was now time to “restate our similarities rather than continuously focus on our differences”, and invited him to meet her to discuss “ways of working together”.

The letter comes as it was revealed senior GPs are spending as little as one day a week seeing patients, because they are too busy working on organisational reforms.

Statistics gathered under the Freedom of Information Act by research group False Economy found the changes could cost up to £40m, as family doctors are temporarily replaced by locum surgeons.

A spokesman for the Royal College of General Practitioners last night insisted it had not changed its position on the Bill amid accusations they had called a “truce” over reforms.

He said: “The word “truce” is rather an awkward one for us.

“What we are saying is that we have those grave reservations about the bill – we have not changed our position about withdrawing it – but we still wanted to have a dialogue.

“We feel that on balance it’s poor legislation but we always wanted to have a conversation; there are still areas we think we might be able to have a positive impact.”

On the same day it was sent, Dr Gerada shared her thoughts publicly on social network site Twitter, writing: “How many amendments do you need to #NHSbill before you call it a day and say enough is enough …stop and withdraw it?”

Just three days later, the College wrote to members of the Liberal Democrat Party urging them to “do what you can to withdraw the Health and Social Care Bill.”

The letter to Mr Cameron, signed by Dr Gerada, reads: “We both share a passion for the NHS and we all want to find a way of improving it.

“The last 18 months have polarised the debate and we feel it is now the time to restate our similarities rather than continuously focus on our differences.

“I am writing to you in the hope that we can find an acceptable way forward in which the Royal College of General Practitioners is able to work with the Government towards the future stability of the NHS in England and where we can help you find a way through the tensions to achieve a better health service for our patients.”

The prospect of compromise with the GPs should come as a relief to the Government, as the Bill returns tomorrow to the House of Lords while MPs stage an opposition day debate in the Commons.

Ed Miliband has urged MPs of all parties to use the debate to take a final opportunity to state their opposition to the Bill.

He said: "I would appeal to MPs from all parties to stand back, recognise these concerns and take this final opportunity in the House of Commons to reject this Bill.”